danielyou56
1997 & 2001...
missed conversion hit the post score is 56 - 10 and 1 min to go
New Zealand vs PNG
- Thread starter rhugh89
- Start date
danielyou56
1997 & 2001...
no siren sound
Only 16-10 to NZ in the second half, well done to PNG for making it competitive in the second fourty!
rhugh89
Danny 'Bedsy' Buderus
SBW scores hat-trick as Kiwis crush PNG
AAP
9:27am Sat 09th November, 2013
New Zealand powered past Papua New Guinea 56-10 to carry momentum into the World Cup quarter-finals.
Code-swapping star Sonny Bill Williams scored a hat-trick as defending champions New Zealand steamrolled Papua New Guinea 56-10 on Friday in their final Rugby League World Cup Pool B match.
The Kiwis scored 10 tries in total in an ominous broadside ahead of next weekend's quarter-finals, while halfback Shaun Johnson followed up on his 24 points in the previous 48-0 victory over France with 16 more from the boot.
New Zealand completely dominated PNG, their speed off the ruck led by mazy running from Issac Luke and Johnson offering up wave after wave of attacking lines that led to easy yards up the middle of the paddock.
Man of the match Williams, who as a centre won the Rugby World Cup with the All Blacks on home soil in 2011 and is bidding to become the first player to win World Cups in both codes, scored three tries in a total of seven in the first half.
He was rested from last weekend's demolition of France, which followed the Kiwis' opening 42-24 victory over Samoa.
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and Dean Whare both crossed twice for New Zealand.
The two opening wins had already assured New Zealand of a place in the quarter-finals, and coach Stephen Kearney was left to shuffle his squad against Papua New Guinea.
"There's a lot of improvements for us to work on. We've just got to keep on working and step it up another level," said Williams in his ninth rugby league Test appearance, with 19 All Blacks games also to his credit.
Kiwis coach Stephen Kearney added: "I thought there were some glimpses tonight of some pretty good form.
"Papua New Guinea came out after halftime and really put it to us, put in a great effort and made life difficult for us.
"We'll have a good look at the tape and assess everyone and see how everyone pulls up."
Williams opened his account by bouncing off a would-be tackler and crashing over as his side charged to a 24-0 lead after 17 minutes.
The cross-code star went over for his second in the 27th minute, shooting through three defenders and affording himself a big smile after almost repeating his gaffe against Samoa when he slipped over the dead-ball line when touching down.
After a selfless offload to Frank-Paul Nu'uausala, Williams notched his third try on the halftime hooter to lift his side to a 40-0 lead at halftime.
The 18,000-plus capacity crowd at Leeds' Headingley Carnegie Stadium erupted when PNG halfback Dion Aiye crossed under the posts, while Wellington Albert scored a late consolation try for PNG.
"There was a couple of great tries - it would have been nice to have a couple more," said Kumuls coach Adrian Lam.
"They're the world champions and were red hot in the first half, I was just really proud of the team for hanging in there."
http://www.nrl.com/sbw-scores-hat-trick-as-kiwis-crush-png/tabid/10874/newsid/75327/default.aspx
- - - Updated - - -
By the clock: New Zealand thumps PNG
By Chris Kennedy
NRL.com
9:24am Sat 09th November, 2013
All the big moments from New Zealand's 56-10 thumping of Papua New Guinea.
1st minute: Papua New Guinea with the kick-off and Bromwich is met by a ferocious wave of defence. A good start to PNG but they give away a penalty from the second play to put New Zealand on the attack.
2nd minute: That didn't take long! A neat Foran grubber on the last play is cleaned up by Goodwin. The grounding is questionable but the referees are satisfied, Johnson adds the extras. New Zealand lead 6-0.
5th minute: Mead somehow clings on to a towering high ball as PNG finally get their first possession five minutes into the match.
7th minute: Wow! Freakish skills from Tuivasa-Sheck to latch onto a Foran cross-field kick and ground in the corner; not many players could have scored that. Great sideline conversion from Johnson, NZ 12-0.
10th minute: Oh dear. First PNG give away a fifth-tackle penalty through Wabo, then Hoffman bombs a try – he should have passed that one.
11th minute: It doesn't matter though, after some loose passing the ball ends up with Tuivasa-Sheck who ballerinas his way through the line for his double. 18-0.
15th minute: This is getting out of hand now – another penalty late in the count then Sonny Bill Williams, who's been one of New Zealand's best and busiest on field so far, crashes over to score. 24-0.
18th minute: Abavu marks a kick in goal to earn PNG just their second set of the game.
20th minute: Great defence from PNG to repel an attacking raid, they'll need more of that.
23rd minute: Three straight penalties, two against Kasiano, piggy back PNG up to the NZ line for their first opportunity but they throw away possession with a forward pass.
26th minute: SBW crashes over for his second after a Vatuvei line break. He needlessly ran right up to the dead ball line... does he just not realise how short these in-goals are here? 30-0.
29th minute: It's raining tries! A brilliant scything dummy half run from Luke puts SBW in space, Williams almost could have had his hat trick but selflessly offloads to put Nu'uausala over.
Johnson somehow hits the post from in front to mess up his perfect goal-kicking record. 34-0.
38th minute: PNG have got themselves right into the arm-wrestle finally, with some help from a lopsided penalty count. An attacking Aiye grubber threatens the Kiwis but Hoffman cleans up.
40th minute: Hat trick for SBW! Too easy for the Kiwis as a great Johnson cut-out pass sends him through a gap. A point per minute for the Kiwis, 40-0 at half time.
42nd minute: TRY PNG! A brilliant run from Nandye on the last, his pass goes to ground but ends up with Aiye who dives over. Paniu is the third goal kicker tried by the Kumuls and he could have thrown this one over. 40-6.
46th minute: Did the teams swap jerseys at halftime? PNG go the length of the field and force a drop out. NZ haven't touched the ball yet this half.
48th minute: Leuluai comes on, makes one tackle and goes straight off favouring that injured groin. That could be his tournament sadly.
50th minute: Normal service is resumed. It took NZ 10 minutes to get up PNG's end of the field but they score at the first opportunity as Whare strolls through some non-existent defence. 46-6.
56th minute: Whare goes in for his double. The referees are satisfied with the grounding, 52-6.
63rd minute: Back-to-back NZ sets are repelled by the Kumuls, finishing with Goodwin being smashed into touch by a ferocious Mead hit. There's one for the highlight reels.
68th minute: Not this time though, as a Johnson cross field kick is batted back by Goodwin and Taylor crosses in the corner. Johnson hits the post again, 56-6.
71st minute: Four tries for SBW! Kiwis go the length of the field, again Goodwin bats back a Johnson kick, this time SBW is on hand to clean up. But wait... the video ref doesn't like Goodwin's challenge for the ball and rules no try.
The Kiwis are stunned, the crowd boos, Sonny Bill looks shattered, but it's a fair call – Goodwin leapt early and took the defender out.
73rd minute: A nasty cannonball tackle from Matulino on Aiye, he's on report and rightly so. He might be in doubt for the next game.
74th minute: PNG desperately unlucky not to score after some great work from Wabo and that man Nandye. On the next play Mead leaps for a high ball in the corner but the ball goes out.
His face meets the advertising hoardings as he slides through, he's ok but they really are far too close to the action.
77th minute: Johnson glides straight through and puts Matulino over but his pass is ruled forward. PNG still giving it everything in defence, to their credit.
78th minute: Try PNG! Aiye carves through the line, finds Nandye in support who passes to Albert who scores. PNG are celebrating like they've won the World Cup and good on them, they've been outclassed but never stopped trying.
Paniu hits the post, 56-10. There won't be time for a restart so that will be the final score, SBW is unsurprisingly the man of the match.
http://www.nrl.com/by-the-clock-new-zealand-thumps-png/tabid/10874/newsid/75326/default.aspx
- - - Updated - - -
New Zealand v PNG player ratings
By Chris Kennedy
NRL.com
10:00am Sat 09th November, 2013
Sonny Bill Williams scored a hat-trick and was the star of the show in New Zealand's 56-10 win over Papua New Guinea.
Every player rated from New Zealand's 56-10 win over Papua New Guinea, including our first World Cup 10-point rating.
NEW ZEALAND
1. Josh Hoffman: A bombed try when he should have passed will give his detractors ammunition but he did some great clean-up work at the back. 6.5
2. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck: Scored a scintillating early double, had fewer opportunities thereafter but was always threatening. 8
3. Dean Whare: A smooth and professional effort with two tries and one try assist. 7.5
4. Bryson Goodwin: Scored the opening try and was solid throughout. Both centres are making it hard for Krisnan Inu to get back into the lineup. 7.5
5. Manu Vatuvei: Carted the ball up strongly, earning himself an early shower once the result was decided. 7
6. Kieran Foran: Kicked the Kumuls to death in the opening onslaught and finished with four try assists. World class. 9
7. Shaun Johnson: Just as dangerous running the ball as he was kicking it. Finished with two try assists and four tackle breaks, and landed eight from 10 conversions. 8.5
8. Ben Matulino: Some strong runs but a bit of a brain snap when he launched himself at the legs of Aiye in the second half, which might have him in doubt for the next game. 7
9. Isaac Luke: Cut the Kumuls to shreds with his scything dummy-half runs, especially in the first half. They just had no answer to him. The form hooker of the tournament. 9.5
10. Jesse Bromwich: A consistent threat with ball in hand, finished with a massive 170 metres and was always hard to bring down. 9
11. Alex Glenn: Solid, but not heavily involved. 6
12. Sonny Bill Williams: Even the scarcely believable numbers – 13 tackle breaks, 10 offloads, four line breaks, 166 metres, and three tries (which was almost four) – don't do him justice. Targeted by PNG, he was smashed every time he touched the ball but always found a way to offload, and was involved in absolutely everything for 80 minutes. Utterly devastating, the perfect back rower's game. 10
13. Elijah Taylor: Mostly quiet in attack but still managed to jag a try and got through plenty of tackling. 7
14. Sam Moa: The former Tongan international hit the ball up enthusiastically at every opportunity. 7
15. Sam Kasiano: Piggy-backed the Kumuls up the field with a couple of ruck infringements but was hard to bring down with ball in hand. 6.5
16. Frank-Paul Nuuausala: Under-used by Steve Kearney but let no-one down in his time on field. 6
17. Thomas Leuluai: Sadly only on the field for a few moments before being forced off by that groin injury. No score
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
1. David Mead: Few opportunities in attack but was flawless at the back, with plenty of clean-up and defensive work to do. 7.5
2. Josiah Abavu: Some quality touches to help get PNG out of trouble on a couple of occasions, but plenty of points were scored down his wing. 7
3. Emmanuel Yere: Probably the best of the Kumuls backline with some dangerous runs and some good takes under pressure. 8
4. Francis Paniu: Despite the lopsided scoreline he was good defensively and produced some good runs. 7
5. Nene McDonald: One dropped bomb should have been taken but was solid otherwise with limited opportunity. 6
6. Ray Thompson: A disappointing game from one of the team's few NRL players. Kicking was poor, he failed to find touch with a penalty and his running game was non-existent. 5
7. Dion Aiye: A top-class game from the halfback. Several of his attacking kicks threatened Hoffman, he was dangerous with ball in hand and his late line break set up one of the side's two tries. 8
8. Neville Costigan: A solid game from the former Novocastrian, but wasn't able to trouble the monster Kiwis pack. 6
9. Charlie Wabo: Promoted to start, he gave up a poor penalty and PNG generally looked more solid with Aiton at dummy half. 6
10. Joe Bruno: Was particularly bruising in defence. 6.5
11. Jessie Joe Nandye: Has arguably been PNG's best on field for three games in a row. Was involved in the lead up to both tries and led his side in both metres (111) and tackles (25). Never stopped trying; it would be great to see him in the NRL. 9
12. Jason Chan: Twice dropped the ball cold – once with his team on the attack and once coming out of trouble. Also gave up two penalties. 5
13. Sebastian Pandia: A quiet game from the lock, who had some defensive issues trying to contain a rampant Kiwi forward pack. 5.5
14. Wellington Albert: Injected some spark off the bench and scored a late try. 6.5
15. Paul Aiton: Classy from the moment he came on after 20 minutes. He settled the team down, defended well and produced a great touch-finder when his team needed it. 7.5
16. Jason Tali: Another who produced some bruising hits in defence. 6.5
17. Mark Mexico: The best of the bench forwards, his bullocking runs looked the most likely to trouble the Kiwi defenders. He passed the 100-metre mark with three tackle breaks. 8
http://www.nrl.com/new-zealand-v-png-player-ratings/tabid/10874/newsid/75328/default.aspx
AAP
9:27am Sat 09th November, 2013
New Zealand powered past Papua New Guinea 56-10 to carry momentum into the World Cup quarter-finals.
Code-swapping star Sonny Bill Williams scored a hat-trick as defending champions New Zealand steamrolled Papua New Guinea 56-10 on Friday in their final Rugby League World Cup Pool B match.
The Kiwis scored 10 tries in total in an ominous broadside ahead of next weekend's quarter-finals, while halfback Shaun Johnson followed up on his 24 points in the previous 48-0 victory over France with 16 more from the boot.
New Zealand completely dominated PNG, their speed off the ruck led by mazy running from Issac Luke and Johnson offering up wave after wave of attacking lines that led to easy yards up the middle of the paddock.
Man of the match Williams, who as a centre won the Rugby World Cup with the All Blacks on home soil in 2011 and is bidding to become the first player to win World Cups in both codes, scored three tries in a total of seven in the first half.
He was rested from last weekend's demolition of France, which followed the Kiwis' opening 42-24 victory over Samoa.
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and Dean Whare both crossed twice for New Zealand.
The two opening wins had already assured New Zealand of a place in the quarter-finals, and coach Stephen Kearney was left to shuffle his squad against Papua New Guinea.
"There's a lot of improvements for us to work on. We've just got to keep on working and step it up another level," said Williams in his ninth rugby league Test appearance, with 19 All Blacks games also to his credit.
Kiwis coach Stephen Kearney added: "I thought there were some glimpses tonight of some pretty good form.
"Papua New Guinea came out after halftime and really put it to us, put in a great effort and made life difficult for us.
"We'll have a good look at the tape and assess everyone and see how everyone pulls up."
Williams opened his account by bouncing off a would-be tackler and crashing over as his side charged to a 24-0 lead after 17 minutes.
The cross-code star went over for his second in the 27th minute, shooting through three defenders and affording himself a big smile after almost repeating his gaffe against Samoa when he slipped over the dead-ball line when touching down.
After a selfless offload to Frank-Paul Nu'uausala, Williams notched his third try on the halftime hooter to lift his side to a 40-0 lead at halftime.
The 18,000-plus capacity crowd at Leeds' Headingley Carnegie Stadium erupted when PNG halfback Dion Aiye crossed under the posts, while Wellington Albert scored a late consolation try for PNG.
"There was a couple of great tries - it would have been nice to have a couple more," said Kumuls coach Adrian Lam.
"They're the world champions and were red hot in the first half, I was just really proud of the team for hanging in there."
http://www.nrl.com/sbw-scores-hat-trick-as-kiwis-crush-png/tabid/10874/newsid/75327/default.aspx
- - - Updated - - -
By the clock: New Zealand thumps PNG
By Chris Kennedy
NRL.com
9:24am Sat 09th November, 2013
All the big moments from New Zealand's 56-10 thumping of Papua New Guinea.
1st minute: Papua New Guinea with the kick-off and Bromwich is met by a ferocious wave of defence. A good start to PNG but they give away a penalty from the second play to put New Zealand on the attack.
2nd minute: That didn't take long! A neat Foran grubber on the last play is cleaned up by Goodwin. The grounding is questionable but the referees are satisfied, Johnson adds the extras. New Zealand lead 6-0.
5th minute: Mead somehow clings on to a towering high ball as PNG finally get their first possession five minutes into the match.
7th minute: Wow! Freakish skills from Tuivasa-Sheck to latch onto a Foran cross-field kick and ground in the corner; not many players could have scored that. Great sideline conversion from Johnson, NZ 12-0.
10th minute: Oh dear. First PNG give away a fifth-tackle penalty through Wabo, then Hoffman bombs a try – he should have passed that one.
11th minute: It doesn't matter though, after some loose passing the ball ends up with Tuivasa-Sheck who ballerinas his way through the line for his double. 18-0.
15th minute: This is getting out of hand now – another penalty late in the count then Sonny Bill Williams, who's been one of New Zealand's best and busiest on field so far, crashes over to score. 24-0.
18th minute: Abavu marks a kick in goal to earn PNG just their second set of the game.
20th minute: Great defence from PNG to repel an attacking raid, they'll need more of that.
23rd minute: Three straight penalties, two against Kasiano, piggy back PNG up to the NZ line for their first opportunity but they throw away possession with a forward pass.
26th minute: SBW crashes over for his second after a Vatuvei line break. He needlessly ran right up to the dead ball line... does he just not realise how short these in-goals are here? 30-0.
29th minute: It's raining tries! A brilliant scything dummy half run from Luke puts SBW in space, Williams almost could have had his hat trick but selflessly offloads to put Nu'uausala over.
Johnson somehow hits the post from in front to mess up his perfect goal-kicking record. 34-0.
38th minute: PNG have got themselves right into the arm-wrestle finally, with some help from a lopsided penalty count. An attacking Aiye grubber threatens the Kiwis but Hoffman cleans up.
40th minute: Hat trick for SBW! Too easy for the Kiwis as a great Johnson cut-out pass sends him through a gap. A point per minute for the Kiwis, 40-0 at half time.
42nd minute: TRY PNG! A brilliant run from Nandye on the last, his pass goes to ground but ends up with Aiye who dives over. Paniu is the third goal kicker tried by the Kumuls and he could have thrown this one over. 40-6.
46th minute: Did the teams swap jerseys at halftime? PNG go the length of the field and force a drop out. NZ haven't touched the ball yet this half.
48th minute: Leuluai comes on, makes one tackle and goes straight off favouring that injured groin. That could be his tournament sadly.
50th minute: Normal service is resumed. It took NZ 10 minutes to get up PNG's end of the field but they score at the first opportunity as Whare strolls through some non-existent defence. 46-6.
56th minute: Whare goes in for his double. The referees are satisfied with the grounding, 52-6.
63rd minute: Back-to-back NZ sets are repelled by the Kumuls, finishing with Goodwin being smashed into touch by a ferocious Mead hit. There's one for the highlight reels.
68th minute: Not this time though, as a Johnson cross field kick is batted back by Goodwin and Taylor crosses in the corner. Johnson hits the post again, 56-6.
71st minute: Four tries for SBW! Kiwis go the length of the field, again Goodwin bats back a Johnson kick, this time SBW is on hand to clean up. But wait... the video ref doesn't like Goodwin's challenge for the ball and rules no try.
The Kiwis are stunned, the crowd boos, Sonny Bill looks shattered, but it's a fair call – Goodwin leapt early and took the defender out.
73rd minute: A nasty cannonball tackle from Matulino on Aiye, he's on report and rightly so. He might be in doubt for the next game.
74th minute: PNG desperately unlucky not to score after some great work from Wabo and that man Nandye. On the next play Mead leaps for a high ball in the corner but the ball goes out.
His face meets the advertising hoardings as he slides through, he's ok but they really are far too close to the action.
77th minute: Johnson glides straight through and puts Matulino over but his pass is ruled forward. PNG still giving it everything in defence, to their credit.
78th minute: Try PNG! Aiye carves through the line, finds Nandye in support who passes to Albert who scores. PNG are celebrating like they've won the World Cup and good on them, they've been outclassed but never stopped trying.
Paniu hits the post, 56-10. There won't be time for a restart so that will be the final score, SBW is unsurprisingly the man of the match.
http://www.nrl.com/by-the-clock-new-zealand-thumps-png/tabid/10874/newsid/75326/default.aspx
- - - Updated - - -
New Zealand v PNG player ratings
By Chris Kennedy
NRL.com
10:00am Sat 09th November, 2013
Sonny Bill Williams scored a hat-trick and was the star of the show in New Zealand's 56-10 win over Papua New Guinea.
Every player rated from New Zealand's 56-10 win over Papua New Guinea, including our first World Cup 10-point rating.
NEW ZEALAND
1. Josh Hoffman: A bombed try when he should have passed will give his detractors ammunition but he did some great clean-up work at the back. 6.5
2. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck: Scored a scintillating early double, had fewer opportunities thereafter but was always threatening. 8
3. Dean Whare: A smooth and professional effort with two tries and one try assist. 7.5
4. Bryson Goodwin: Scored the opening try and was solid throughout. Both centres are making it hard for Krisnan Inu to get back into the lineup. 7.5
5. Manu Vatuvei: Carted the ball up strongly, earning himself an early shower once the result was decided. 7
6. Kieran Foran: Kicked the Kumuls to death in the opening onslaught and finished with four try assists. World class. 9
7. Shaun Johnson: Just as dangerous running the ball as he was kicking it. Finished with two try assists and four tackle breaks, and landed eight from 10 conversions. 8.5
8. Ben Matulino: Some strong runs but a bit of a brain snap when he launched himself at the legs of Aiye in the second half, which might have him in doubt for the next game. 7
9. Isaac Luke: Cut the Kumuls to shreds with his scything dummy-half runs, especially in the first half. They just had no answer to him. The form hooker of the tournament. 9.5
10. Jesse Bromwich: A consistent threat with ball in hand, finished with a massive 170 metres and was always hard to bring down. 9
11. Alex Glenn: Solid, but not heavily involved. 6
12. Sonny Bill Williams: Even the scarcely believable numbers – 13 tackle breaks, 10 offloads, four line breaks, 166 metres, and three tries (which was almost four) – don't do him justice. Targeted by PNG, he was smashed every time he touched the ball but always found a way to offload, and was involved in absolutely everything for 80 minutes. Utterly devastating, the perfect back rower's game. 10
13. Elijah Taylor: Mostly quiet in attack but still managed to jag a try and got through plenty of tackling. 7
14. Sam Moa: The former Tongan international hit the ball up enthusiastically at every opportunity. 7
15. Sam Kasiano: Piggy-backed the Kumuls up the field with a couple of ruck infringements but was hard to bring down with ball in hand. 6.5
16. Frank-Paul Nuuausala: Under-used by Steve Kearney but let no-one down in his time on field. 6
17. Thomas Leuluai: Sadly only on the field for a few moments before being forced off by that groin injury. No score
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
1. David Mead: Few opportunities in attack but was flawless at the back, with plenty of clean-up and defensive work to do. 7.5
2. Josiah Abavu: Some quality touches to help get PNG out of trouble on a couple of occasions, but plenty of points were scored down his wing. 7
3. Emmanuel Yere: Probably the best of the Kumuls backline with some dangerous runs and some good takes under pressure. 8
4. Francis Paniu: Despite the lopsided scoreline he was good defensively and produced some good runs. 7
5. Nene McDonald: One dropped bomb should have been taken but was solid otherwise with limited opportunity. 6
6. Ray Thompson: A disappointing game from one of the team's few NRL players. Kicking was poor, he failed to find touch with a penalty and his running game was non-existent. 5
7. Dion Aiye: A top-class game from the halfback. Several of his attacking kicks threatened Hoffman, he was dangerous with ball in hand and his late line break set up one of the side's two tries. 8
8. Neville Costigan: A solid game from the former Novocastrian, but wasn't able to trouble the monster Kiwis pack. 6
9. Charlie Wabo: Promoted to start, he gave up a poor penalty and PNG generally looked more solid with Aiton at dummy half. 6
10. Joe Bruno: Was particularly bruising in defence. 6.5
11. Jessie Joe Nandye: Has arguably been PNG's best on field for three games in a row. Was involved in the lead up to both tries and led his side in both metres (111) and tackles (25). Never stopped trying; it would be great to see him in the NRL. 9
12. Jason Chan: Twice dropped the ball cold – once with his team on the attack and once coming out of trouble. Also gave up two penalties. 5
13. Sebastian Pandia: A quiet game from the lock, who had some defensive issues trying to contain a rampant Kiwi forward pack. 5.5
14. Wellington Albert: Injected some spark off the bench and scored a late try. 6.5
15. Paul Aiton: Classy from the moment he came on after 20 minutes. He settled the team down, defended well and produced a great touch-finder when his team needed it. 7.5
16. Jason Tali: Another who produced some bruising hits in defence. 6.5
17. Mark Mexico: The best of the bench forwards, his bullocking runs looked the most likely to trouble the Kiwi defenders. He passed the 100-metre mark with three tackle breaks. 8
http://www.nrl.com/new-zealand-v-png-player-ratings/tabid/10874/newsid/75328/default.aspx
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rhugh89
Danny 'Bedsy' Buderus
Kearney delighted with NZ's RLWC win
By Ian Laybourn
AAP
3:13pm Sat 09th November, 2013
New Zealand coach Stephen Kearney was delighted with his side's 56-10 Rugby League World Cup victory over Papua New Guinea but admitted the loss of Thomas Leuluai with a recurrence of a groin injury took away some of the gloss.
Leuluai missed the Kiwis' opening wins over Samoa and France after pulling a groin muscle in training on the eve of the tournament and lasted just two minutes of Friday night's match at Leeds.
Kearney said he had no regrets over taking a gamble on the fitness of the former Wigan half-back or hooker, who will remain on tour even if he plays no further part in the World Cup.
"Thomas trained well yesterday and got through the session," he said.
"We had to give him an opportunity tonight, I think the stakes are too high after this week.
"It doesn't look good for him and he's pretty disappointed. He had geared himself for a big tournament.
"It's a real shame for him. I know he would have added a great deal to the squad. I'm pretty keen to keep him here, he's a very valued member of the group."
Sonny Bill Williams scored a first-half hat-trick of tries as the holders cruised to a 40-0 halftime lead but the brave Kumuls at least stemmed the tide in the second half to bow out of the tournament with some pride.
"Sonny Bill had a lot of touches," Kearney said.
"He had a real dominant performance.
"I thought it was a pretty complete performance in that first half. We talked in the week about being focused and disciplined and we were certainly that.
"I made a few changes at halftime and that probably threw the mix of the group out a bit but overall I was pleased."
Kearney will also assess injuries to winger Manu Vatuvei (knee) and fullback Josh Hoffman (shoulder) and will anxiously await the outcome of a match-review panel after prop Ben Matulino was put on report for an alleged canonball tackle.
Papua New Guinea bow out of the tournament without a win but coach Adrian Lam was delighted with his side's response to their earlier defeats by France and Samoa.
The Kumuls lost the second half only 16-10 after scoring consolation tries through Dion Aiye and Wellington Albert.
"I was really proud of them in the first half as well, even though the scoreline was not good," Lam said.
"We only had the ball for nine minutes in the first half but we hung in there. It was a great test of character.
"We questioned their character and courage and asked them to stand up to get some of the respect we felt we lost."
http://www.nrl.com/kearney-delighted-with-nzs-rlwc-win/tabid/10874/newsid/75327/default.aspx
By Ian Laybourn
AAP
3:13pm Sat 09th November, 2013
New Zealand coach Stephen Kearney was delighted with his side's 56-10 Rugby League World Cup victory over Papua New Guinea but admitted the loss of Thomas Leuluai with a recurrence of a groin injury took away some of the gloss.
Leuluai missed the Kiwis' opening wins over Samoa and France after pulling a groin muscle in training on the eve of the tournament and lasted just two minutes of Friday night's match at Leeds.
Kearney said he had no regrets over taking a gamble on the fitness of the former Wigan half-back or hooker, who will remain on tour even if he plays no further part in the World Cup.
"Thomas trained well yesterday and got through the session," he said.
"We had to give him an opportunity tonight, I think the stakes are too high after this week.
"It doesn't look good for him and he's pretty disappointed. He had geared himself for a big tournament.
"It's a real shame for him. I know he would have added a great deal to the squad. I'm pretty keen to keep him here, he's a very valued member of the group."
Sonny Bill Williams scored a first-half hat-trick of tries as the holders cruised to a 40-0 halftime lead but the brave Kumuls at least stemmed the tide in the second half to bow out of the tournament with some pride.
"Sonny Bill had a lot of touches," Kearney said.
"He had a real dominant performance.
"I thought it was a pretty complete performance in that first half. We talked in the week about being focused and disciplined and we were certainly that.
"I made a few changes at halftime and that probably threw the mix of the group out a bit but overall I was pleased."
Kearney will also assess injuries to winger Manu Vatuvei (knee) and fullback Josh Hoffman (shoulder) and will anxiously await the outcome of a match-review panel after prop Ben Matulino was put on report for an alleged canonball tackle.
Papua New Guinea bow out of the tournament without a win but coach Adrian Lam was delighted with his side's response to their earlier defeats by France and Samoa.
The Kumuls lost the second half only 16-10 after scoring consolation tries through Dion Aiye and Wellington Albert.
"I was really proud of them in the first half as well, even though the scoreline was not good," Lam said.
"We only had the ball for nine minutes in the first half but we hung in there. It was a great test of character.
"We questioned their character and courage and asked them to stand up to get some of the respect we felt we lost."
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